I did not become Muslim overnight. In fact, at first, learning about Islam came quite unexpectedly on my part. I had simply become acquainted with some Muslims and questioned them wanting to understand something of their beliefs. I was surprised to discover many similarities between the teachings of Islam and Christianity. I came to understand that I could not judge Islam merely from the actions of some “Muslims” I had seen and heard about. To learn something of the real teachings of Islam, I was going to have to throw away my prejudices and begin to learn about it open-mindedly. Unfortunately, I found a great deal of misunderstanding between the Christian and Muslim communities partly due to biased media coverage on both sides and by Muslim and Christian individuals who are not living by the standards of good conduct taught in both these great faiths. Just as the teachings of Christianity are not always apparent from observing the actions of the “typical American Christian,” I realized that to understand Islam I was going to have to look beyond the actions of some Muslim individuals to get to the truth. I was encouraged by a new friendship with a sincere, amicable Muslim woman. As I have always enjoyed reading, I went in search of some good books about Islam.
What surprised me most, initially, was that the Muslims already had some knowledge of the teachings of Christianity because Muslims, too, love and believe in Jesus Christ, peace be upon him. I learned that the word “Islam” literally means peace through submission to God by belief in His Oneness and by obedience to Him. Thus, Islam claimed to be the same religion preached by all the earlier prophets, in whom Muslims must also believe. These prophets include Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, John the Baptist, and Jesus (peace be upon them all), among others. The Quran says:

“And We (God) did not send any Messenger before you but we inspired him (saying): There is no god but God. None has the right to be worshipped but I (God). So worship me.”
(Quran 21:25)

Islam encourages marriage as a means of sexual chastity and a means of comfort and happiness in life. A marriage is considered a contract between a man and a woman with each of the parties having rights and responsibilities. Upon marriage, a Muslim woman loses neither her family name nor control of her own property. In fact, I discovered that Islam is not oppressive to women, as I had previously thought. I learned that for centuries Muslim women have had rights that most Western women have only obtained in recent years.
I also learned that the followers of Islam worship God in ways strikingly similar to the worship described in the Bible. The Muslim prays daily reciting these words from the Holy Quran: “In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful; Praise be to God, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds; Most Gracious, Most Merciful; Master of the Day of Judgement; Thee (alone) do we worship and Thine aid we seek; show us the straight way, the way of those on whom thou has bestowed Thy Grace, those whose portion is not wrath and who go not astray.” (1:1-7)
Christians are kindly referred to in the Holy Quran as the People of Scripture or “People of the Book” and are addressed directly.

“Say: O people of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and you: That we worship none but God; That we associate no partners with Him; That we erect not from among ourselves lords and patrons other than God.”
(Quran 3:64)

Christians and Jews are also told that their own scriptures will guide them to the truth of the Quran and Mohammed’s prophethood (2:146, 5:41-47, 7:157). Obviously, I was going to have to take this “challenge” and see if my Bible could really vouch for the divine origin of Islam.
Evidence of the unity and oneness of God as taught in Islam is found throughout the Bible. In Deuteronomy (32:39) God says, “There is no god beside Me,” and in Isaiah (43:10) “Before Me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after Me.” In Exodus (8:10) “No one is like the Lord our God,” and in Jeremiah (10:6-7) “There is none like unto Thee, O Lord.” Other verses stating the same can be found in Deuteronomy (4:35, 4:39, 6:4), Isaiah (45:5, 45:21-22, 46:9), II Samuel (7:22), I Kings (8:60), I Chronicles (17:20), Psalms (86:8, 89:6, 113:5), Hosea (13:4), and Zechariah (14:9). When asked “Which commandment is the first of all?”, Jesus answered, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is One.” (Mark 12:28-29) Even after the ministry of Jesus, Jesus’ apostles understood this oneness of God. Evidence of this is found throughout the epistles. “God is One” (Romans 3:30); “There is no God but One” (I Corinthians 8:4); “One God” (Ephesians 4:6, I Corinthians 8:6, I Timothy 2:5); and Paul writes to James (2:19), “You believe that God is One: you do well.”
It is over the nature of Jesus (peace be upon him) that Islam and Christianity really differ. I could agree with the Muslim on basically every other issue, as I found Islam to be both simple and rational. That Jesus was the divine Son of God and part of the Trinity is the essential belief of most Christians. That Jesus was not divine but rather an honored prophet of God is the essential belief of every Muslim. I knew that I had to prove to myself (in order to remain a Christian) that the Bible unequivocally affirms the trinity (i.e. that God is One yet made of three equal and distinct parts), one of part of the trinity being Jesus, the Son. Yet, when I earnestly searched, I could find no real base for the trinity in the Bible. I could not find proof that Jesus or any of the prophets who came before him (peace be upon them all) taught trinity. They all preached monotheism. And how could it be that all of the prophets were ignorant of the very basic nature of God and misguided of the true religion? This could never be! Further investigation showed that the word “trinity” itself is found nowhere in the Bible. The verse that for years seemed to give it some justification has been expunged from the Revised Standard Version and other versions of the Bible because it is not found in any old texts of the New Testament (i.e. it was added to the Bible much later). This is the verse found at I John (5:7) in the King James Version: “The Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one.”
According to Christian sources, “Various Trinitarian concepts exist. But generally the Trinity teaching is that in the Godhead there are three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; yet, together they are but one God. The doctrine says that the three are coequal, almighty, and uncreated, having existed eternally in the Godhead.” (Watchtower) This is the fundamental doctrine of most churches. Because there is no rational or logical way to explain the trinity teaching that three can be separate yet equal one (1 + 1 + 1 = 1)! most churches say this doctrine is a “mystery,” cannot be proved, and must be accepted merely on faith. But I began to question how or why I should accept such a doctrine on faith when it is not explicitly taught in the Bible. If it was not a Biblical teaching, then whose teaching was it? It seems that the trinity concept evolved as an explanation of the supposed divinity of Jesus. So I decided to look further for Bible proofs of Jesus’ divinity.

Source.

I may have answered or posted my story before in this thread, but I feel that now I can give a fuller, richer account of my journey to Islam.

The true start to my road to becoming a Muslim started around the year 2000-ish (maybe a little earlier). Islam wasn't on my radar, but at the time I was just feeling lost. I was born and raised Catholic, but around the age of 6 or 7 stopped attending Church regularly (to no fault of my parents, they had to work A LOT in my early years to make ends meet). So from age 7-15 I was a firm believer in a God. Never in my life has that fact wavered in my mind. But I began to question many other things, nothing specific, just went through a general "Why" phase.

So in my "Why" phase I began reading about any and all religions I could find. And one day I came upon Islam, I read about it was SHOCKED that is fell in line with Judaism and Christianity, so I kept read more and more and more. I fell in love with the faith and everything it encompassed and in the Summer of 2001 was SERIOUSLY thinking of reverting. Then 9/11 happened. And I just felt to uncomfortable in that climate to go to my parents and tell them my feelings about reverting. They're wonderful and open minded, but at that time it just would have been hard for them to swallow. For the next few months after 9/11, I drifted away from Islam. Not only because I didn't know how people would react to me studying and reading, but because the attack on the World Trade Center just had a HUGE impact on me.

Slowly but surely I started back on my search to find inner peace, and again Islam was the brightest light. I kept on reading and listening to EVERYTHING about Islam I could, I wanted to be absolutely sure that IF I were to revert it was going to be the best thing for me. Little did I know it would take 4+ years for me to reach that level of certainty. Yes, 4+ years later I was sure Islam was my path. And the reason it took so long is because I understood Islam wasn't a half-hearted faith, and by jumping in half-heartedly I'd only be hurting myself.

Almost a year ago my life changed forever. I gave my declaration of faith, and filled that emptiness in my heart with my new submission to Allah (SWT). I'm learning more everyday, and striving more and more everyday. And although being a Muslim can be tough. Just the feeling of waking up every morning is a wonderful thing now.

Salaamu alaikum Sister!

If you don't mind - I have copy pasted your reversion story for my collection... I needed stories like your for my future Dawa. May Allah bless you more and keep you and your family always in his guidance... Ameen

Salaamu alaikum everyone...

After Isha... I called the Athan and - since the usual Imams where not yet there... the congregation pushed me back in front to be Prayer Imam. It felt natural right now and I feel very much at home in front.

Then, I finally got the chance to start reading all these Reversion Stories starting from Page 1.... Alhamdullillah! it's now 1:30AM - and I just finished it. Most of the stories I copy pasted for my compilation project.

I wanted to put my story here now... but I found out that my story in my Website isn't finished yet, I only have a brief sumary in the Introduce Yourself Threads... I guess I will just copy paste that one and place it here.

This is truly a site Blessed and protected by Allah SWT. And I thank HIM for keeping and guiding me always into the right path.

Ameen!

Allahu-akbar! Allahu-akbar! Allahu-akbar!

HERE'S MY REVERSION STORY (digested form)

Alhamdullillah! I am so happy and thankful to Allah (SWT) for guiding me and helping me find the company of the righteous here in cyberspace.

I am also glad to find a fellow former seminarian (Woodrow) who also discovered the truth and embraced the true religion preached by all prophets sent by Allah, One God Almighty.

My journey in discovering Islam is one long and lonely road. I really never had any chance to come across any Islamic material or literature whatsoever before and I would say that my entrance to Islam was a divine journey.

Eversince I was a child… I read in the bible that we shouldn’t be calling anyone father… since there is only One father… but how come I need to call the Jesuit Rector in my school as Father Lutz?.... I grew up with this hanging question in the back of my head. I joined many sects of Christianity in their Sunday services before I entered the seminary in 1986. My entry into the seminary was actually accidental… I was frustrated with so many things that time – I wanted to enter a Monastery and be a monk… even Shaolin Monk or Budhhist – whatsoever – as long as I can live in seclusion and be away from the cares of this world. It turned out to be a secular order seminary… Nevertheless, I though I can find the answers in this formation house.

I didn’t, however – I learned many things… in fact, I learned a lot…. Since it was a formation house… I have to live there with problematic adolescents… so I learned to drink, smoke and everything that is associated with alchohol and nicotine and Bars.

Since I befriended the Bishop and some Major Seminarians… I have advanced my Regency… but it’s actually an excuse to get out of the seminary and get busy with the family business.

To cut a long story short. I became a man of the world… Been there… done that…. You name it… I’ve been it. And eventually, got married… had a child… became domesticated by a Christian wife… underwent into a long marriage crisis. Lost one of the family houses… Lost 2 family Businesses… Family broke apart…. Almost lost my own family… Almost died for about 7 times more or less, Became down and out… Hitting rock bottom. I have been at many times experiencing the downs of life… but this time 2 years ago – was the lowest and the darkest. I locked myself in a room and faced the floor with my hands stretched… crying and surrendering. I knew that there are only two things that can happen to me after this. It was –1. asking for the devil and end my life… or 2. Surrender to God. I cried so hard until I couldn’t cry anymore… talking to God directly… somewhat having a conversation with Him. I have seen my life flashing back in front of me starting from the day I was born to the turmoil to the present… all the bitterness, hardships and pain… all rushed in as if it was a wild stream. And suddenly… it was peace and calm. I felt like a veil was suddenly lifted up and it’s as if I can see the sun rising for the first time in my life. I felt like it was the first day of my life…

After that incident… I attended my brother in laws Ecumenical Prayer Group and also my Mother in Laws Protestant Church… I became active in both and they all wanted me to become a pastor since they were all touched by my testimony.

My brother in law who knew me for so long couldn’t believe that I really have changed. He recall that I was always critical about protestants before… due to my Catholic family background. But I was ecumenical already even before I entered the priesthood seminary. I just became my real self once again before I was introduced to the dirty world.

But, this was just a short introduction to where I was truly led for. I was without a job for about a year already and the small business I am setting up was cut short due to my raptured appendix last January 2006. Since I surrendered to God, I will accept whatever He will provide for me… no matter what. I was prepared to accept even a small job like selling Fishballs in the market – and I will not be ashamed – even if this will be embarrassing for somebody whom a lot of people in my area would consider as among the upper class of society. I really don’t care about family pride anymore, I was already a new man. As most Christians would say… I was born again.

Then after a few weeks… although my family is still at the risk of breaking up… I asked and prayed with the Christian Groups I was involved in and I was only encountering miracle after miracles. But this is not yet the gist of the story.

I just received a call from Saudi… I never wanted to go in this place, I never applied for any job whatsoever specially not here anyway. It was a job offer… and it was an offer I cannot refuse. The job was something I always dreamed of doing for so long since childhood. To cut the long story short…

I asked my Saudi employer when I got here last September to buy me an English Qur’an… after he heard my story, he told me… my friend… you are a Muslim. I was shocked to hear it… I asked how and why? He told me the definition of Muslim and Islam… and eventually, bought me an English Qur’an.

I read it and I was crying while I was reading it. At last! I have found the truth! I FASTED that October since it was Ramadan after I made my informal Shahadah… I made 3 informal Shaddahs since every place I visited thought I didn’t made shahadah yet. But I Didn’t have a Muslim guide who can always be with me… but the Qur’an. I have read it day and night… prayed in the mosque 5 times… Been friends with the Imam… The Imam who don’t speak a word in English except Good Morning! whose name is Muhhamad always kid me that I will become Imam when he goes back to Egypt. I never took him seriously… I know he’s just kidding – It was impossible for me to learn Arabic… it was like a tongue twister… moreover, I am nearly 40 and memorizing a foreign language would be really difficult.

My dear Brothers and sister… for the past months… I was occasionally the Imam and I don’t recall how it happened and when it happened. I am recognized already a the official Muazzine. I sometimes wonder… how it could be.

But – I have never felt more happier… “a day in the courts of the Lord is better than a thousand elsewhere…” -

Please pardon me for writing long… since this is not off topic… it is still introducing myself. I tried my best to summarize my story but it’s hard to give the big picture without showing the small ones that make the connection.

What I really wanted to say… “When Christ mentioned in the book of Timothy: Ask anything to my Father using my name, cast evil using my name… but there will come a time when you can pray directly to the Father without using my name,” - I am not sure what verse but I was grasping the context of that chapter. I was wondering why… no apostle of Jesus (Issa AlleihiSalaam) asked.. WHEN?

Then I found myself into Islam… all my hanging questions were answered.

I believe!… I surrender!…. I submit!…. I follow!...

May Allah be pleased with us all and Bless Us always to Say the Right words, think the Right Thoughts, Do the right Deeds and all at the Right Time, all the time.

Sallaamu Alikum Warahmatullahi wabarakathu Brothers and Sisters in faith!



A Believer.

thanks for sharing ur story ..i saved it ..InshaAllah will read when i go offline..may Allah bless u

very inspiring and very touching . May ALLAH TALLAH shower his blessings on you.

subhanallah the stories left me in tears!!
i really liked the story of the ten year old who became muslim. Hopefully al be able to read the rest of the stories .

TRULY ISLAM IS A COMPLETE WAY OF LIFE!!

PLEASE CONTINUE POSTING SUCH BEAUTIFUL AND TOUCHING STORIES..MAY ALLAH REWARD U OL ABUNDANTLY..SHUKRAN

Hopefully Ur Members Here And Al Get To Talk 2 U One Day When I Become A Full Member!!

just wondering at that age, assuming that the boy hasn't reached adolesence yet and since children are not resposible for the actions at that age, would he still be considered as a revert. does that make sense?

Brother believer..that was touching story. Subhaanallaah. Allah guides whom He wills. You were sincere in search and you finally found. Hopefully your family havent broken down.

asalamu aleyk sister. i really liked ur story.i wud like to ask u some questions and i was wondering how i will get in touch. Praying that ur family become muslims (if they arent already).

very touching
may Allah bless u all

mashallah very very nice article!!

believer your reversion is so amazing... Allahu Akbar...